Government launches Protocol for Star Rating of Garbage-Free Cities

The Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) has launched the ‘Protocol for Star Rating of Garbage-Free Cities’ in Goa. It has been developed under Swachh Bharat Mission – Urban for rating cities on 7-star rating system based on multiple cleanliness indicators for solid waste management.

Rating: Cities will be rated as 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 7 star based on their compliance with protocol conditions specified for each of rating. City will be given rating of 3 star or above only after it is declared ODF (Open Defecation Free).

Cities can self-declare themselves as 1-star, 2-star or 4-star provided that MoHUA carry out additional verification through independent third party to certify cities as 3-star, 5-star or 7-star. Cities need to get themselves recertified every year to retain their star-status.

Significance: It provides stakeholders with single metric to rate a city’s cleanliness, rather than separately evaluating multiple factors which contribute to city’s overall cleanliness and garbage free status. It will assess many cities for having higher stars as compared to only one city being “Cleanest city” under Swachh Survekshan.